Fire-escape.



PATENTED JAN. 10, 1905.

J. MOLTZ,

FIRE ESCAPE.

APPLICATION FILED 001. s, 1903.

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PATENTED JAN. 10, 1905. J. MOLTZ.

FIRE ESCAPE.

APPLICATION FILED 0013, 1903.

2 SHEETk-SHEET 2.

8 V Q a I 2 v fluh 7 4 UNITED STATES Patented January 10, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

FIRE-ESCAPE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 779,188, dated January 10, 1905.

I Application filed October 3, 1903. Serial No. 175,687.

To It whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OHN MoLrz, a citizen of the United States,'residing at West Leyden, in the county of' Lewis and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Im provements in Fire-Escapes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to portable fire-escape apparatus of the variety mounted upon a truck and capable of being extended vertically to any desired height within its range of adjustment and leaned either to the right or to the left to reach the building or structure from which escape is to be made.

For a full description of the invention and the merits thereof and also to acquire a knowledge of the details of construction of the means for effecting the result reference is to be had to the following description and drawings hereto attached.

While the essential and characteristic features of the invention are susceptible of modification, still the preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of a fire-escape constructed in accordance with and embodying the essential features of the invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section of the apparatus, showing the structure extended and leaned. Fig. 3 is a detail view showing the slip-joint formed between the matching ends of adjacent ladder-sections, the spring-catch for securing the sections when coupled, and the operating means for releasing the springcatch.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the following description and indicated in all the views of the drawings by the same reference characters.

The truck for supporting the operating parts may be of any make and substantial construction. The lazy-tongs structure com-.

posed of levers 10 is mounted upon the truck to be leaned to either side and is extended by any suitable means, such as straps or flexible connections 16, connected at one end to the lowermost levers and adapted to have their opposite end portions wound upon a shaft 17 journaled to the framework of the truck.

machine.

The elevator is of the hoist type and comprises a car 24, track 25, and hoisting rope or .cable 26, the latter passing over a pulley 27 at the upper end of the lazy-tongs structure. The opposite end of the hoisting rope or cable 26 is connected to the Windlass or drum 28 and is adapted to wind thereon. The car 2% may be of any design or construction and. is provided at oneside with pulleys or wheels 29 to travel upon the side pieces of the track 25, said wheels being grooved to retain the car in proper position. The track 25 is of sectional construction and of ladder formation, the sections being detachableto admit of lengthening and shortening the track to adapt the same to the elevation of the structure when raised to reach any required elevation within the capacity of the The topmost section is by preference permanently connected to the topmost tie-rod 13 of 'the structure, and when the lazytongs are closed it rests within a guide 30, attached to the truck-frame, said guide having its side pieces of greater width than the side pieces of the track-sections and slightly flared at their upper ends to facilitate the entrance of the topmost section into the space formed between the side pieces of the guide when lowering the structure. The corresponding ends of the track-sections are connected by slip-joints, the one being formed or provided with a socket and the other being pointed or made tapering, so as to readily enter the socket. Spring-catches 31 of any structural type may be provided to hold the sections together when coupled. The catches 31 are adapted to be disconnected from the lower end of the sections by means of a lever 32, applied to the lower portion of each section and connected by wire or like means 33 to the respective catches. When the lazy-tongs are extended and the track completed by fitting together the required number of sections, said track is supported when the structure is leaned by means of the tic-rods 13, as indicated most clearly in Fig. 4. The track 25 9 may be used in the capacity of a ladder, the rungs being spaced apart adistance to admit of stepping from one to the other when mounting or descending the ladder. The Windlass or drum 28 is adapted to be operated by a sections for releasing the catches when the ladder-sections are to be separated, substantially as set forth.

2. In a fire-escape, the combination of a truck, an extensible structure mounted upon the truck, a sectional ladder,'means for connecting the first section of the ladder to the topmost portion of the extensible structure, a guide applied to the truck and adapted to receive said first section of the ladder when the structure is folded and to receive the succeeding sections as the extensible structure is elevated, and means for positively connecting the sections, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

JOHN MOLTZ. [n sQI Witnesses:

A. WINFIELD TRAINOR, WILLIAM GANFIELD. 

